As a group in an engineering class, we are looking to solve the problem: "When securing fins to their surfboard, surfers encounter screws becoming stripped through overuse and improper tightening. This limits the fins ability to be removed or installed." We would really appreciate if you could just take a minute to fill out the survey linked here as part of our market research. Thanks! http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DVTDGVS
and are COMPLETELY retarded...as a self-admitted "fin nerd", the FCS 2 system is flawed beyond belief & based almost entirely on marketing/profit margin. i used to use solely FCS in my board, but have moved to futures for this & a few other reasons. i don't own a single board w/ FCS anymore.
how are they flawed i have fcs2 in board i just got and love the system and thats coming from somebody who only has had futures.
I don't like the new system either. The little roller barrel that "locks" the fin in place looks weak and I don't see why most people would even care to save 15 seconds just so they don't have to screw it on. However, the new FCS Origin system looks pretty rad (it screws in).
the fins that i've seen are no better quality than the original 2 tab FCS fins...& FCS's quality control has been going downhill for years. also, the first run of boards i've seen w/ FCS 2 plugs all had, at best, extensive pressure denting on the bottom where the board was held down during fin removal. at worst, that area was caved in; this isn't FCS's fault, but it is related to the system & i think glassers will have to start applying an extra patch on the bottom of boards around the fin cluster to prevent this. also, the whole concept is based solely on marketing & increasing profits from FCS...in all my years using FCS, i never once thought that unscrewing fins was such an inconvenience as to require a new system. FCS 2 is patent protect, so all you surfers who use kinetic, true ames, soar, shapers, etc...fins in your boards, you will NOT be able to get them for FCS 2 until their patent runs out. & don't be so naive as to think that the backwards compatibility will remain engineered into the boxes; once the second generation of these boxes comes out, those grub screw holes will be history. basically, my take on FCS 2 is that the shareholders saw a chance to regain some market share, created a "problem" & then engineered a solution to it.
oh, the attachment is solid. i've nearly sliced my hand on the trailing edge of fins trying to get them out. there's no real problem there in terms of the security of the fin. i firmly believe that FCS is shooting itself in the foot in the long run w/ this system, but surfers are sheep, so maybe not. i've not seen the origins system yet in person, but it seems like a pretty cool concept...i slightly dislike how it sits down in the board (the flange {for lack of a better term} of the fin sits flush w/ the bottom of the board) b/c i think that could create some stress issues for lightly glassed boards over the long term, but that's one of the issues w/ FCS 2 plugs also. they test these things w/ the pros, for whom surfboards are essentially disposable tools. if one last 6 months, it's a shock. so stress cracks & denting & caving isn't as serious a concern for them. SOAR fin co. out of australia started doing powerbase fins & boxes a few years ago & they seem like they are much better engineered than the origins.
o.k., so I was wrong. If it's that strong, maybe FCS were trying to help eliminate the screw stripping problem that I've heard of (but never experienced, since I don't take my fins out that often)...but it's probably more likely that future are taking over the market
Took the survey.... Didn't realize this was a problem. I only take my fins out when I travel and the boards go on the plane. I guess if you are taking them off every day it would probably strip the screws or fins. Back when I was being mentored to shape boards I couldn't get over the complexity of setting the fins. Its amazing the fluid dynamics involved! Fins have to be set in just the right spot on the board, at just the right angle and also must be symmetrical. Mess it up and the board is worthless! I also at the time was trying to learn the mechanics and physics of surfboards and surfing. I was blown away by how complex it all is!
